Slow Laptop

[Smoky14]

My wife's computer is slow. It is a Vista system and it is taking forever. Is there a site or program I can run to see if it is a HD going bad, or a plugged up system. I've run both a malware and V check and no malware is evident. I know Vista isn't the best system but it was sufficient for her needs until lately. Thanks for your help. Smoky

 

[rfeir]

First run diskclean and then defrag the HD. If still slow, from start, run msconfig. See what is set to run upon startup and remove unneeded programs and utilities from the startup menue. Report back after you do all of that if it is not much faster. Also, how much memory are you running?

 

[OVERKILL]

How much RAM does it have? As rfeir asked above. Vista is a pig.

 

[beanoil]

"It is a Vista system." That pretty much sums it up right there. But I echo what rfeir recommends. I'll add that an upgrade to Win 7 wouldn't be a bad choice. Even XP is a better choice than Vista.

 

[45ACP]

Originally Posted By: beanoil

"It is a Vista system." That pretty much sums it up right there. But I echo what rfeir recommends. I'll add that an upgrade to Win 7 wouldn't be a bad choice. Even XP is a better choice than Vista.

+1 Had ONE computer with Vista, a little Asus Eee 900 microbook. It had Vista. It wasnt horrible, but it was entirely forgettable. I use my normal-size 15.6" Toshiba Satellte L, brand new with Win7SP1, for everything. It is the BOTTOM of the line L755 model with a dual core processor called Pentium not Core.. and it is still great. Sees regular use and still in top condition. I was in Best Buy three months ago and they had an open box 17" HP VISTA laptop at $429 that cost $100 more than a Compaq qith Win 7 and smaller screen and they couldnt give it away. Im actually curious as to whether or not they sold it. Given what was around it, i do not think they did....

 

[SrDriver]

Download, install, and run CCleaner. Link to Download Site Run it a couple of times to insure it removes everything. Make sure you also go to Windows Update and install all the updates. What are you running for anti-virus software? As you are aware you can only have one in use. Run the free Windows Security Scanner. See web site below. Link to Microsoft Security Scanner For anti-virus software I recommend the free Microsoft Security Essentials software. Link to Microsoft Security Essentials Wife uses Vista on her Laptop with no issues. It is around 3 years old and performs well.